Brit boxer Ekow Essuman crashes out ring and given oxygen in KO by Jack Catterall
Ekow Essuman was given oxygen by medics after crashing out of the ring in a controversial end to his fight with fellow Brit boxer Jack Catterall.
The Nottingham star, 36, and the Chorley ace, 32, battled at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in a thrilling fight on the undercard of Chris Eubank Jr vs Conor Benn 2. In the 11th round, Essuman appeared to trip when Catterall landed an uppercut, then fell as the referee tried to intervene, but Catterall had pressed on.
The action resumed and seconds later Catterall unloaded a flurry of punches that saw Essuman go down and through the ropes. The fight was waved off as medics rushed to Essuman’s aid, while Catterall, showing his class by not celebrating, checked on his opponent.
Essuman was given oxygen – which the commentators on DAZN explained is standard procedure – during a delay before he got to his feet.
It was a nasty knockout and fans applauded as Essuman stood up again, before Catterall had his hand raised to confirm the victory, 50 seconds into the 11th round.
Some boxing fans on X were critical of the referee John Latham, with one posting: “That’s a stinker from the ref! Ekow Essuman was knocked down from multiple shots after the call to break but wasn’t given a second to recover, ridiculous, then Ekow’s brutally stopped not 20 seconds later.”
Another fan said: “Disgusting result – pathetic refereeing. Essuman incredibly hard done by there.”
A third commented: “Controversy! Catterall hits Essuman after referee calls for a break & drops him, ref then without hesitation allows the fight to continue after the knockdown, Catterall then stops Essuman & knocks him out of the ring. Terrible refereeing!”
The welterweight fight had earlier seen Essuman’s face left a bloody mess after being cut open by Catterall after a couple of rounds, before Catterall himself suffered a cut to the eye.
Essuman was also floored by a smart combo from Catterall in the fourth round. He managed to beat the referee’s count and see out the last 15 seconds of the round.
In round seven Catterall suffered his cut, to his right eye, but he managed to fight on and secure a big victory. After paramedics had helped him Essuman thankfully made it onto his stool and was able to get to his feet to embrace his old sparring pal Catterall.
The win was Catterall’s first inside the distance for over six years and puts him in the WBO’s No. 1 position.
